(title per ZeroHedge) When Neel Kashkari, a former Goldman Sachs banker who helped administer the U.S. Treasury Department’s bailout program during the 2008 financial crisis, was appointed as President of the Minneapolis Federal Reserve Bank, I commented on his intent to break up the big Wall Street banks as either too good to be true, or… [Read More]
A Trump Election- A New Direction For the US Economy?
The jury is out and the predictions from economists are varied. The elections were supposed to reduce the concerns and uncertainty prevalent in our country; they have not. While there is now hope, uncertainty about our economy is stronger than ever. A Trump presidency fundamentally challenges the future of globalization and status quo capitalism. We may… [Read More]
Silence is Deadly. Lessons Learned.
The audience was primarily internal auditors at my presentation this week at the 11th Annual Fraud Summit, held at the University of Texas at Dallas, where I teach, sponsored by the Institute of Internal Auditors, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, and Information Systems Audit and Control Association. I talked about fraud and how as… [Read More]
Now We Know — The DOJ Ignored Two FCIC Citi Criminal Referrals!
Several items have recently hit the press regarding the financial crisis of 2008 which could lead to further investigation of what actually happened and who is responsible. One that has me excited is the National Archives releasing the first of many documents of the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) which have been sealed for five… [Read More]
Breaking News: Bank Whistleblowers United D.C. News Conference
Our Bank Whistleblowers United initiative team, William K. Black, Gary J. Aguirre, Michael Winston and I are headed to Washington D.C. for a news conference, to be held at 10 a.m. tomorrow, Thursday, February 25, at the Campaign for America’s Future headquarters, 1825 K Street NW, Suite 400. I invite you to join us if… [Read More]
The Large Bank Stranglehold is Tightened!
I continue to tell my audiences the large banks have a “stranglehold” on our country and that “The Dodd-Frank provisions attempting to place controls on the large banks have been systematically gutted …” As 2015 comes to a close all eyes in Washington D.C. are looking at a critical deadline which looms over Congress, our… [Read More]
Breaking News: The Congress Blog posts my op-ed
Every once in a while I ask myself if I’m making any headway in getting the attention of Congress’ Senate Banking Committee and House Financial Affairs Committee. You may recall, this last year when I appeared on Bloomberg, I asked for a Congressional investigation into the “Too Big to Fail” malfeasance. Even though I keep… [Read More]
New DOJ Policy to Prosecute … Real or Smokescreen?
Perhaps, finally the hue and cry to prosecute those responsible for the 2008 financial crisis is having an impact. It looks as if the Department of Justice is changing its tune. This last Wednesday, the DOJ announced a new policy to go after the individuals who have committed financial crimes. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates… [Read More]
History Repeats Itself… Congress Tries to Reinstate Controls on the TBTF Banks
In May, Robert Reich, former Labor Secretary, listed restoration of Glass-Stegall as a key Presidential candidacy criterion. Reich was in Iowa for the Raising Wages/Working Families Summit – the first of a national series – where he was the featured speaker. The reinstatement of Glass–Steagall is steadily gathering public support. A bipartisan group of senators… [Read More]
What Would You Do?
The room filled with almost 300 bankers plus was very quiet. The 60 Minute interview with Steve Kroft, which told about what I had experienced at Citi, had just finished playing. There was a collective sigh when the clip stopped and I asked, “What would you do?,” if you had experienced widespread fraud, corruption and… [Read More]